Filling the Void
by Hoshida Yuujin
Summary: Losing someone can break even the most comical of people. Isshiki Satoshi reminisces his lost friend few days before the latter's birth anniversary. Will he be able to move on or will the past continue on haunting him? A Shokugeki no Souma fan fiction. Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Souma.
1. Chapter 1 - The Lost Tenant

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: I don't own Shokugeki no Souma. The creators of the manga/anime do.**

 **Hello, this is my first Character x female OC fan fiction. I hope you like it. If there are any problems with the content (grammar, spelling, etc.), please do message me. I'll be willing to comply as much as I can.**

 **Also, this fan fiction is best read after reading Chapter 147 of the manga... If not, expect some spoilers.**

* * *

Winning back their rights to stay in the Polar Star Dormitory and preventing the building from getting demolished, the residents of the self-sustaining dormitory of Tootsuki Culinary Academy rejoiced by holding a banquet. Every one of the residents cooked one or two of their specialty dishes to celebrate their victory on the recently concluded Shokugeki against the current Ninth Seat, Etsuya Eizan.

Several friends of the tenants came to the area and enjoyed the party together with the nine student-residents, one freeloader, and the mother-figure of the dorm. The Aldini twins shared some laughs and a few bickerings with their friend who won the Shokugeki for the dormitory, Yukihira Souma. Erina was surrounded in a corner of the dining hall by her cheerful cousin, with her personal aide behind her, and her former secretary and childhood friend. Megumi and Shun returned from the kitchen with still-hot foods on their hands. The hall was filled with laughter and cheers. Why wouldn't it? They just got saved from eviction.

* * *

While almost every single one of the residents and their visitors was having a good time with each other on the first floor, the wooden flooring of the second floor creaked as a figure walked into the nearly hollowed area of the building. After a few more steps and creaks, the figure stopped in front of an unoccupied room of the dormitory.

* * *

"Tadokoro, have you seen Isshiki-senpai?" Souma approached the blue-haired schoolmate from behind who was having a conversation with Ryouko. Megumi turned around and faced her fellow tenant.

"I-Isshiki-senpai? Isn't he back already?"

"Is he? I haven't seen him yet."

Overhearing the small conversation, Ryouko shifted her weight to her left hip and folded her arms in front of her. "I think it's better for us not to snoop on Isshiki-senpai for now."

"Huh? Why?" Curious, Souma shifted his attention to the big sister of the residents.

"It'll be almost her birthday," Ryouko muttered.

"Birthday? _Whose_ birthday?"

* * *

"It'll be five days before your birthday. I wish I was there beside you instead of getting worked up with my Elite Ten duties. I know that it's already useless for me to say this, but..."

Facing the unoccupied room of the Polar Star Dormitory, a wavy-haired figure stood with his eyes staring down at the door while tears slowly running down his cheeks.

"I am so sorry for not being there when you needed me. I'm so sorry for taking you for granted. If only I noticed how bad it was getting, I could have been helping you fight your problem."

Snivels and whimpers echoed through the dark hallway of the second floor, unbeknownst to anyone in the dining hall. In front of the dusty door, the current Seventh Seat of the Elite Ten, who was known as a carefree and comical person, stood with his hands balled into a fist and tears falling down into the untidy flooring. Little did he know, a shorter figure emerged from the shadows and slowly approached the crying Satoshi. Slowly, an arm stretched towards the shoulder of the sobbing teenager and comforted him.

"It's not your fault."

"Y-Yes it was!" Satoshi looked up and turned to the old lady standing beside him. "If I had only been beside her during those times she wanted someone to talk to, to listen to her problems, and to just lend her a shoulder to lean on, she could have been spared from all of it!"

"S-Satoshi-kun..."

"It's because of my work that I rarely got time for her. If only I didn't accept the Seat, she could still be here with us." The brown-haired lad sniveled even more.

"But, you forgot. It was _her_ who asked you to take the Seat, despite your protests. After all, she _was_ on a Seat herself." The dormitory mother continued on trying to comfort her oldest tenant.

"But if it wasn't for my negligence on checking up on her, she wouldn't have to keep her problems all bottled up inside her."

"You should know her off _all_ people. She never liked to impose on anyone."

"But it was _my_ fault for not noticing that something was wrong with her!"

"Satoshi-kun..."

Cries and sobs continued to be heard from the second floor of the dormitory while the young blue-eyed male received comforting pats from the old woman with him.

* * *

"E-eh? Isshiki-senpai's **girlfriend**?"

Souma's sudden outburst got the crowd around him into a standstill, bothered by what was going on with him.

"Yep. She was the former sister figure here in the dorm." Ryouko continued on talking with her batchmates now lending their ears to the conversation, not that most of them did not know _anything_ about it.

"She was just as happy and cheerful as Isshiki-senpai. She was even able to temporarily prohibit him from walking around in the nude."

"Erina-san, Alice-san. Does your family still have contact with her?" The eyeglasses-wearing border suddenly spoke.

"Ever since the incident, she cut off all her ties with the family. Even with Ojii-sama." Erina softly uttered while eyes down on the floor.

"Nope. She never contacted me ever since I received the news about the incident." Alice turned to her aide and saw his soft nod, giving his agreement.

Silence slowly emerged in the dining area as if the party was already over. The residents of the Polar Star dormitory, except Souma, had their sad faces on, and so did the Nakiri cousins and Ryou and Hisako. The twins noticed how gloomy everyone around them was being when a red-headed boy of their age suddenly broke the forming muteness.

"So who's this former girlfriend of Isshiki-senpai?"

Out of those who had their heads down, a certain silver-haired maiden toughened herself and answered the question.

"She's the kindest cousin I and Erina could ever have, and one of the very few people whom Ojii-sama never got angry with."

"She's Nakiri Kinri, the Tenth Seat before Erina."


	2. Chapter 2 - The Man in Flowers

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for reading the first chapter. After a few days, lo and behold, the second chapter. Enjoy.**

 **I don't own Shokugeki no Souma. :) Well, except for the OCs.**

* * *

"Erina~~"

The wooden door of the Polar Star Dormitory gave way as a silver-haired Japanese came in, looking for her dear cousin.

"Good morning, Alice-chan, Ryou-kun."

"Good morning, Isshiki-senpai." From the outside, Isshiki Satoshi welcomed the visitors. The upperclassman was in his usual farming attire - wearing nothing but his fundoshi, exposing his glistening, sun-kissed muscles to those who take a look at his direction. This, however, did not flinch the Nakiri Alice and her personal aide. Not one bit. In fact, she even skipped joyfully towards the almost naked dorm representative and faced him with no sense of disgust or awkwardness whatsoever. "Is Erina-chan here?"

"Oh. Sorry. Kuga-kun came by and took her earlier, along with Souma-kun and Megumi-chan. If you leave now, you still might catch up to them-"

Without further ado, Alice dashed right out of the dormitory, not before she said her thanks and goodbye in a haste. The personal aide, with boredom present on his face, said his farewell to the upperclassman and followed his master.

 _Were Kuga-kun and Erina-chan that close before?_ After seeing the two visitors fade into the background, Satoshi ventured into the building, humming.

* * *

On ordinary days, the roads of the campus tend to be spacious, having only a very few number of cars coming and going through the academy. But because of the sudden change in the administration, one may notice few unfamiliar cars racing through the road quite frequently. Can they be people associated with the new director? Or can they be the new staff of the academy? Who knows.

Somewhere in the chain of roads of the academy grounds, a black vehicle can be seen moving fast. The red fiery design around the charcoal black car's tires and body made it look like the car was set ablaze when it actually was not. As it came fast down the asphalt road, people inside the car settled themselves into a conversation.

"Terunori-senpai, what was it that you wanted with me?" Erina spoke while gazing into the fast-moving scenery beside her. Yukihira and Tadokoro, on the other hand, were still wondering as to why they were in the vehicle with the two Elite Ten Council members sitting in front of them.

"You remember that small favour you asked me two weeks before the opening of classes?" The eighth seat replied while his eyes firmly straight on the road ahead. The slight boredom on Erina's face suddenly lifted as she turned around to look at the driver, her eyes widening in anticipation. "D-Don't tell me..."

"My network may not be as wide as Eizan's, but I was still able to do it."

"Hey." Curious about what's going on, the redhead butted in. "What are you guys talking about?" The blue-haired girl beside her was still slightly shocked by her sudden involvement in all of this.

"Sorry to drag you into this, Yukihira-chin. Same to your friend over there." Kuga swiftly looked in the rear-view mirror, reflecting the faces of the two passengers behind him, and then returned his vision on the road ahead. "It's just that we don't have much time. I'll explain it to you guys later. Right now, Erina-chin and I have to be at the meeting place as quick as possible, so I had no choice but to drag you guys along with her."

The long honey blonde sitting beside Kuga cleared her throat. " _Anyway_... Kuga-senpai, are you sure about _this time_?"

Kuga glanced to his left to the somewhat impatient underclassman. "This time, chances are higher. After sending some of my agents outside of Tokyo, one of them wanted to report back."

"I sent this agent of mine to Shizuoka a few months back. Yesterday evening, I received an e-mail from him. He returned here to Tokyo hoping to report personally on his progress."

"But that doesn't mean-" Erina was cut off.

"According to the e-mail, somewhere in Shizuoka, he saw someone who fits the description perfectly." At that moment, Erina completely blanked out on what she was about to say and instead focused her ears and eyes onto the driver.

"There, he saw someone who greatly resembled the one we're looking for."

"K-Kinri-nee..." Fluids slightly emerged from the blonde lady's pink eyes. She covered her nose and mouth with her right hand, trying to suppress her forming irregular breathing. Hearing that her long-lost cousin could have been found after almost a year of disappearance, hope and joy overwhelmed Erina. Even if it be just a slight chance, the tenth seat tried to contain the happiness she was feeling, not realising that it was leaking right out of her being. "Thank goodness..."

* * *

A few moments later, the four students arrived at a cafe outside of the academy grounds. After parking up the vehicle, the first years followed Kuga into the establishment. Erina tried to appear composed on the outside as she entered the building, but deep inside, she was tingling with the hope of finally seeing, or, at least hearing, about her cousin who was the tenth seat before her.

The newly arrived customers turned their heads into a vacant table right beside the entrance. The U-shaped table booth had more than enough seat for the four of them as Kuga let his underclassmen sit first. Erina decided to sit in the middle of the booth, with Megumi following her from the left and Soma after her. Kuga positioned himself to the right of the honey blonde, leaving an empty seat on the other side.

There weren't many customers present that day. The cafe was a bit peaceful; aroma of freshly grounded coffee beans wafting within the four walls, tranquility shrouding over the customers already present in the area, and calming smooth jazz playing through the intercom.

A waitress got their orders before a man in shades and a flowery Hawaiian shirt came through the cafe door. Kuga raised his right arm, getting the attention of the mysterious-looking fellow.

"Sorry for the sudden request, Kuga-sama. And to think that I, who requested for an audience, am late..." The man stood in embarrassment in front of his supposedly master. "Don't be, and don't worry. We just arrived ourselves." The spiky-haired suggested to the man to sit beside him; the latter complied.

Silence enveloped the booth for a few minutes - Souma and Megumi looking at each other, confused, Erina staring blankly onto the desserts counter across the table, and Kuga closing his eyes with his arms crossed as if he was thinking. Slowly, the mysterious fellow faked a cough, snapping everyone out of their trances.

"Kuga-sama, about your friends..."

"Don't mind them. They need not be dispersed." The spiky-haired opened his eyes. "Let's just say that they're _the subject's_ friends."

"Ah, yes. Now, where was I..." From a blackish blue pouch he wore on his hip, the mysterious man, who was apparently Kuga's agent, took out a folded brown envelope. Placing the envelope on top of the table, he took out a photograph. "I have good news and bad news. Which one would you prefer hearing first?"

The upperclassman let out a heavy sigh, feeling the serious atmosphere the topic is heading on to. "What's the good news?" The man in flowers flipped the picture over, and pushed it to the center of the table, visible to not only his master but to his friends too.

In the picture, a young lady in her teens, with purplish blue-colored hair extending up to the middle of her back, was holding a blue basket in her right hand; the basket was filled with fruits, vegetables, and meat products. The woman in the picture was facing to her left, exposing her bright face, slightly revealing a pair of violet orbs staring at a box of cereals at her direction. Judging from that and from the background, the picture was taken at a grocery store somewhere while the subject was grocery shopping.

Everyone else leaned their heads closer towards the picture to take a closer look. Upon first glance at the person in the picture, Erina tried to hold on to her reforming tears as she again covered half of her face with her right hand, slightly emitting soft sobs.

Megumi also took notice of the familiar person in the photograph, as her eyes grew in shock for a few seconds. The redhead glanced at the photo with silence and calmness, as he had no idea of who the person photographed was.

Kuga looked at the placed photo, calmly. "Yup. That's Kinri-chin all right. I know that face anywhere."

Beside him, the honey blonde tried to control the tears that were starting to once again flow from her pink eyes. "K-Kinri-nee..."

"What's the catch?"

"According to the clinic she was rushed into on the day of the accident," the agent took out from the envelope a folded piece of paper, much like a document of sorts. He handed it over to Kuga who then tried to read it. "W-What is this?" Kuga said, confused.

"Because of the accident, she is currently having what the doctor called 'retrograde amnesia'."

Amidst the controlled tears, Erina suddenly stopped her sobs and, with eyes filled with shock, turned around to look at the face of the agent.

 _What? What did he say?_

"She still had memories of day-to-day activities, but she can't remember anything about where she came from, or who she was."

"Did the clinic _even try_ to help her regain her memories?" Kuga gradually increased the pitch of his voice until the end, hinting a bit of anger.

"That's the thing, Kuga-sama. It was the patient _herself_ who denied the help of the clinic. It was, as if, she didn't want to remember anything."

The two ladies at the table turned to each other, puzzled. Kuga's face has confusion, and a small hint of displeasure, written all over it. Souma kept quiet.

"W-What are you _talking_ about?" The eighth seat spat.

"Just as what I said, Kuga-sama. The patient rejected any help from the clinic or from anyone to help her regain her memories. According to them, the patient decided to forget even trying to remember her past, that she didn't want to have anything to do with what she could have left behind." The agent tried to speak calmly, seeing that his master was slightly popping irking marks on his forehead.

Minutes passed by before the next word was uttered. The Tootsuki students, including Souma, were all caught speechless by the turn of events. Kuga tried to process what to say next but kept remembering what his agent just finished saying. Erina's face was frozen in horror by the unexpected catch. Megumi tried to reach the back of the honey blonde to comfort the friend but didn't know how to, so instead chose to put her arm back down. Souma closed his eyelids with his arms crossed, trying to avoid seeing the sudden gloominess that enveloped the area.

* * *

 _I have to leave, fast. There's so much paperwork to be done._

Wearing his complete navy blue uniform, a figure strolled out of room 206 of the Polar Star Dormitory. Upon hearing a metal click behind the wooden door, the blue-eyed brunette took a few more steps before reaching a room beside his, room 207. Satoshi faced the dust-less barrier of the unoccupied room, with his eyes on the creaking floorboards and a strained smile on his face.

"Kinri, I'm going now. There's a lot of paperwork to be done at the Council office. I'll be back before dinner, okay?"

 _I'll be back._

 _Yeah, that's right..._

 _I'll be back..._

 _I wish that you'll be back, too._


	3. Chapter 3 - Red, Green, Blue

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for reading the first two chapters of this fan fiction.**

 **I'm new in this community, but I can already feel the excitement and the joy of seeing your works being read by people all around the world.  
** **Thanks so much.**

 **Just like what I have mentioned beforehand, I do not own Shokugeki no Souma, nor its characters. I do have numerous original characters, and yes, they are mine.**

 **Enjoy.**

* * *

"Everyone, please. I want you to calm down and listen to me. I fear it is likely that I very soon be..."

Two days after Souma's victory against Etsuya Eizan, the Polar Star Dormitory continued to stay up and running indefinitely. Despite that, however, the entire Tootsuki Academy was still anything but peaceful after the announcement of the dissolution of all research societies and seminars. Even inside the salvaged dormitory, problems continued to puzzle its inhabitants.

"... released from the Elite Ten," and cue spit-take from the surprised Zenji and Yuuki.

Considering that the two, along with several others, were eating their meals at the time of the announcement, it won't be much of a shock if anyone were to do that one stunt. That did not hide the fact, however, that no one in the dining hall, save Satoshi himself, was left unfazed by the statement.

"Why!?" Beside the currently coughing Zenji commented a shocked Aoki.

"But I don't want you to stop being the seventh seat!"

Despite having his eyes half-closed, the brown-haired, apron-wearing Satoshi saw the utter shock written all over the amber-haired's face.

"It's a shame, but it was a long time coming. However, I plan to make counter-arrangements as best as I can, while I still exercise my power as an Elite Ten member."

"A plan?"

"For the upcoming "Survivor's Purge", I'll set up a number of rules..."

* * *

"Toudou-chin, were you hiding something from those guys yesterday?"

Boys his age should be in school, learning, chatting with friends, getting their assignments checked, but Terunori Kuga had other plans, and it involved sitting inside a car, travelling at least two hours south of Tokyo, and getting annoyed by the deafening silence that envelopes his being from time to time.

"As expected from you, Kuga-sama. I really can't hide anything from you." A man in colourful Hawaiian shirt uttered with a faint smirk while eyes firmly on the road in front of him.

The spiky-haired chef-in-training rested his left elbow on the armrest beside him while leaving his palm wide open. As he then pressed his chin into his open palm, the young lad turned his eyes to the swiftly changing scenery behind the tinted window. "Then, what is it, Toudou?"

"I didn't want to say this in front of Nakiri Erina-sama, but it seems that Nakiri-sama is currently living a very peaceful life out there. It seems she's already moved on from the car accidents months ago. Is it really okay to pull her back into Tootsuki, considering that the situation over there is currently _very_ unruly?"

Taking a peek through the rearview mirror, the colourfully dressed driver noticed the sudden twitch of the young master's head, now seemingly tilting towards him.

"I-I'm so sorry, Kuga-sama."

"No need. You're right."

"Then, why are we..."

"It's not my intention to bring her back to our world if that's what you're thinking." The second-year student returned his vision to the roadsides. "I consider her to be one of my very close friends, and you should have noticed that. Ever since she left the academy, I've been very worried about her, especially after her defeat against Rindou-senpai. Nope, even before that. And Satoshi-chin cries whenever he's alone or looking at anything that reminds him of Kinri-chin, not that he admits it to anyone."

"What will you gain from all of this, Kuga-sama?"

"Nothing much." Slowly raising his head and placing his arm on his lap, Kuga was now staring at the driver. "Just a confirmation of a friend's safety, and, hopefully, another's return to happiness after being sucked into a world of sadness and self-inflicted sorrow for a period of time."

* * *

"We're off now!"

With a big grin on his face and a blue backpack behind him, an energetic young lad cheerfully opened the wooden door separating him and the bright, dazzling glow of the morning sun. With his hands holding both straps of his bag, the young male turned around, seeing the dimly lit room he came from and a teenage girl standing a few feet from him.

"Come on, Mayoi-nee! We don't wanna be late!" A wide grin formed under the lad's hopeful orbs.

"W-We're off." After sheepishly uttering her words, the teenager-in-view started to move.

The seemingly hyper 12-year-old watched as an older figure of short royal bluish hair approach him. The energetic boy continued on revealing his white pearls as the taller figure, by only around 15 centimetres, emerged into the currently silent streets of a semi-urban town in Shizuoka, who in turn, smiled back to the awaiting youngster.

Kousuke was swaying his head as he skipped through the road. Behind him, Mayoi was noticeably happy, but not to the same extent.

Kousuke looked like any other boy his age - physically fit, not so skinny yet not so plump. His black spiky hair pierced through the air as he continued on skipping with glee. The lad had several freckles on his cheeks, some burrowing deep every time he smiles, revealing his two dimples. He had a fairly brown complexion, something he inherited from his mum, not from his albino dad. Although, he got his blue orbs from the latter.

On the other hand, the more mature girl behind the boy had white skin. Her short hair, which reached down to the blades of her shoulders, had its purplish-blue colour more visible than it was when she was inside their home. Hanging over her left shoulder was her blue book bag of average size, decorated with a few keychains from left to right. Her eyes were half-closed as she continued walking, granting her violet orbs a small peek at everything around her.

"You really are excited about today, huh, Kousuke-kun." Mayoi said with a soft, yet audible voice.

"Of course! I'll be doing my report later with Yamanashi-san as my partner." Turning himself around, a very wide grin appeared on the young male's features.

A small giggle escaped from the older one. "Have you tried confessing to Yamanashi-san?"

"Tehee. I'm thinking about that actually, although I'm waiting for the right moment." Kousuke paused for a moment and waited for the older companion. "It's not that I can just do something like that all willy-nilly or anything."

"I see your point. Well, good luck. Do tell me when you're doing it, okay?"

"Sure thing, Mayoi-nee!"

The two continued on their way.

* * *

Two blocks away from the nearest school, Kousuke and Mayoi had to first cross a normally busy road before reaching their destination. Having no overpass to cater the pedestrians, what was available were a fading pedestrian lane and a newly installed stoplight. Seeing that the stoplight was blinking red, Kousuke decided to come to a halt while waiting vehicles started to rush back and forth in front of him.

The female companion, however, continued taking her steps, about to pass through Kousuke. From a distance, a red race car emerged out of the foreground and was rushing through the asphalt road. Despite this, Mayoi continued on moving, not seeing the imminent danger approaching.

"Mayoi-nee!"

* * *

 _Now, the school's not that far away anymore._

Suddenly, my left arm was yanked back, pulling me in the process. As I turned my head to the left, I saw Kousuke with his face all sweaty and horrified and his hands firmly holding my arm. I wonder what happened?

 _"_ Mayoi-nee! Don't scare me like that!"

 _Scare him? Now, why would I do such a thing?_

"The light's on red. Vehicles are passing. You could have injured yourself, or worse!"

I turned my head to the stoplight they installed two weeks ago.

 _Is it red?_

After taking a small glimpse at the blinking light of the stoplight, I returned my attention to the still attached Kousuke. His eyes are still looking at me as if he doesn't want me to leave him all alone.

 _"_ I'm sorry, Kousuke-kun. I forgot about the stoplight. Thanks for pulling me back."

"Don't scare me like that ever again, Mayoi-nee!"

 _Kousuke's pouting again. He looks quite cute when he does this._

"Yes, yes. Of course. Thanks again, Kousuke-kun." With that, I patted his head, which not just stopped him from pouting but also made him relax a little bit. In fact, it looked like as if he wanted me to pat him more.

After a few more minutes, Kousuke told me to continue walking. I guess the light's back on green now. I really can't tell.

* * *

Two blocks later, the two found themselves walking past the school gate. The previously tensed up male started running away, not before saying goodbye to his companion and chased after two boys his age, probably his classmates.

 _Good luck, Kousuke-kun._

Not long after, the short-haired then came across one of her classmates and, after switching to her indoor shoes, headed to her classroom together with her classmate.

* * *

Cold air was already in town, but not cold enough to actually let one see his own breath. As he took a few more steps down the lane, fallen leaves and twigs broke into two under Satoshi's feet. With both his hands wrapped in the little warmth his side pockets offered him, the brown-haired student continued on taking a silent stroll. After every few steps, he decides to stop in his tracks and gaze into the cloudy skies above.

 _Three more days, and... it's your birthday._

 _You're turning 17 this year, huh._

Slowly, Satoshi took a few more measly steps before stopping once more.

 _Kinri..._

 _I just got dismissed from the Elite Ten._

 _I'm so sorry if I wasn't able to keep my seat there like you wanted me to._

 _After all your bickering, all your pleading, all your all-nighter in disturbing me in my room just for me to accept the position..._

 _I wasn't able to defend it._

 _I really am sorry._

 _But don't worry._

 _Right now, the dorm is still standing, thanks to Yukihira-kun._

 _And I'll do anything I can,_

 _Everything I could,_

 _To make sure that you still have somewhere to go back to._

 _To make sure your room is still here._

 _To make sure... your home is here waiting for you._

* * *

 _"_ Are we there yet?"

"Not yet, Kuga-sama. You can sleep there for now if you want. I'll wake you up if we're near their town."

Kuga was getting impatient, not that his agent didn't notice it. For the past few minutes, the spiky-haired chef has been asking the same question over and over again as he gripped the edges of his seat tightly and swayed his legs. To his luck, Toudou already grew accustomed to the young lad's whining.

"I'm bored, Toudou-chin. Bored!" Annoyed groans filled the vehicle.

A soft sigh escaped from the driver's lips. "I brought your gaming console here in my backpack just in case."

As if without a moment further, Kuga leaned forward through the space between the two front seats and reached for the green backpack placed on the passenger seat. Bringing it with him to the back, he unzipped the bag and located the mentioned gaming console. "You couldn't have mentioned this earlier?"

"And not amuse me with your childishness, Kuga-sama? Not a chance." Kuga twitched at the small chuckle of the agent.

"You're sick." In his hands was now the located console.

"You're welcome, Kuga-sama."

* * *

 **Belated Happy Lunar New Year to everyone.**

 **Okay. I realised Satoshi _MAY_ be a bit OOC on this chapter. Forgive me!**


	4. Chapter 4 - Breakdown

**Thank you for reading this fan fiction of mine up to this far.**

 **And sorry, terribly sorry for having no updates of this until now. I was looking for motivation to type on my tablet...**

 **Also, starting from this chapter, I won't be connecting the story with the timeline in the manga for most parts - it's getting a bit complicated to do so.**

* * *

"Hareda Mayoi, please come here in front and show the class your computation."

"Hai, sensei." Seated in the back part of class 2-B, a short-haired girl stood up, on her hand an opened notebook, as she carefully directed herself to the chalkboard to answer the displayed equation.

The normally stern Fukuoka-sensei kept her eyes firmly on watching her student. Though Mayoi wrote her solution slower than her other students, it was still correct, and the 52-year old teacher did not mind the teenager's writing speed.

"That's correct. Take your seat."

With a faint _'hai'_ , Mayoi returned to her seat in a gingerly manner, not seeing her old female teacher's soft smile. As the class went on, Mayoi kept her attention firmly on the chalkboard and to the aged instructor, not noticing a keen pair of sky blue orbs observing her from behind.

* * *

Isshiki Satoshi found himself walking through the streets of Tootsuki when a loud call of his name stopped him in his tracks.

"Satoshi-kun!"

"Rindou-senpai, what is it?"

The one who walked towards the brunette was Kobayashi Rindou, his senpai by a year and currently known as the Second Seat of the Tootsuki Ten. Her cheerful aura contrasted the somewhat serious air wrapping Satoshi.

"Nothing in particular actually. What brings you here?"

"Actually, same reason as you have. Though probably I'm here to just relax and temporarily free myself with the stress that's been building up lately." Rindou gave a smile to the lowerclassman, her head tilted sideways for that innocent effect.

"Oh. Is that it?."

"I guess so."

"The rules you set up is really interesting, you know that? It's really well thought-out." The sudden topic about his created rules regarding the Survivor's Purge put Satoshi a bit on the cautious side, which did not escape Rindou's keen observation.

"Come on, don't be all serious and agitated with me, Satoshi-kun. I'm just bringing up something to talk about. I don't have much to talk to you about other than Kinr-" Rindou suddenly cut her statement short, realizing she may have just stepped on a landmine. Satoshi's quick eye reflex went noticed by her, thus settling to keep her mouth shut. The brunette's eyelids slowly started to drape over halfway Satoshi's cyan blue orbs.

"Kinri-chan's birthday is just around the corner," Satoshi informed Rindou in a soft, low, almost whisper-like manner.

"S-Sorry for bringing her up, Satoshi-kun." The normally energetic Kobayashi Rindou seemed out of character as she lowered her head, her eyes threatening to eject tears.

"N-No, Rindou-senpai. I-It's not like that."

Satoshi quickly tried to dispell the forming melancholic feeling around them, waving his hands in front of the currently gloomy upperclassman. Rindou noticed how the brunette was trying to cheer her up and acted her part.

"S-Satoshi-kun?"

"If you're blaming yourself for what happened, don't. If there's to blame for all of this," Satoshi lowered his voice and continued in a somewhat guilt-hinted tone. "It's me."

"N-No! It's my fault as to why she left, and you should know that!" There was a forceful conviction in how Rindou rebutted.

She knew herself that ever since the overprotective girlfriend of Satoshi left, she played a major part in the cause of the other's sudden departure. Her emotions showed that she wasn't making it up - tears slowly crawling down her cheeks, hands balled tightly into fists with every word, and her inner self-shouting 'It's my fault' as if when given the chance to communicate with Satoshi telepathically, she'd shout it at him nonstop.

The man noticed how it was eating Rindou from the inside - and he thinks that he should be the one feeling the same, not her. After all, he was, and probably still is, Kinri's boyfriend. If there was anything that was bothering his lover, he should have been there to help her alleviate herself from her worries. But, he didn't notice them at all and just let Kinri face on them all by herself. 'What kind of a boyfriend is he to just let his partner deal with her problems without even lending a hand to the other,' he often asked himself.

"R-Rindou-senpai..."

"Sorry." Rindou slowly took a handkerchief from her skirt pocket and wiped her tears. "It's not like I'm heartless but I should be strong right now. After all, there's still my Central duties to take care of."

"Of course."

"Sorry, Satoshi-kun, but I think I'll go back to the office now. See ya."

"Bye, Rindou-senpai." And with that, Kobayashi Rindou slowly walked out of the brunette's sight.

* * *

"Kobayashi-senpai, by any chance, are you in contact with Kuga?"

Rindou was already inside the building where the offices of the Tootsuki Ten are located and was now walking leisurely towards her very own room when a green-haired lowerclassman called her out from behind. She playfully twirled around before she bent her legs for a surprise attack, licking her lips in anticipation.

"Nene-chan!" Kinokuni Nene was welcomed by Rindou's sudden attack, not escaping the other female's bear hug.

"R-Rindou-senpai! L-Let me go!"

The greenhead tried to struggle under her senpai but came out with nothing - Rindou just intensified her hug, squeezing oxygen out of poor Nene. Rindou pressed her cheeks onto the kouhai's, later noticing that it's turning blue. So, in a snap, Rindou let go of Nene who immediately bent down to her knees, gasping hard for air.

"You're doing your bear hugs a bit too tight, Kobayashi-senpai."

"So you mean I can continue hugging you if I loosen it up a bit?"

Rindou's eyes turned starry as they gazed on Nene, cringing upon her senpai's determination. "H-How did you come up with _that_ conclusion?"

Rindou didn't reply, continuing her hopeful stares at the terrified lowerclassman.

"A-Anyway," They were going off-topic, and Nene noticed that so she again asked Rindou, who, this time, was paying close attention.

"Kuga-kun? Not recently. Why you ask?"

"Ever since the seminars and research societies are all being decommissioned by Central, Kuga hasn't been in contact with anyone. I thought he'd _at least_ try to contact you, Rindou-senpai."

"Now that you mentioned it, I haven't seen him anywhere at all."

"If you find out anything, do inform me, okay, Rindou-senpai?"

"What is this?" Rindou found an opportunity to once again embarrass Nene, so she took her chances. "Why do you want to contact Kuga-kun _that_ badly, Nene-chan? Are we longing for someone out there?"

"R-Rindou-senpai!" Now, Nene was all flustered - and pink. Rindou just laughed at the lowerclassman's blushing mess and left Nene on her own, waving her hands to the flabbergasted teen.

"Sure thing, Nene-chan."

As Rindou walked away from Nene, her mind became full of hypotheses - some plausible, considering Kuga's somewhat brash nature, others really contradicting the Chinese chef's personality.

'For Kuga-kun to be out of sight or of the radar of anyone, I can only think of _two_ possible reasons.'

As she entered her office, she immediately locked the wooden door shut, and instantly headed to her table, withdrawing a cell phone out of one of its drawers.

'If this one is exactly it, you are _so_ going to hear a lot from me, Kuga-kun!'

* * *

As a black car he's riding on raced through the national highway, a loud ringing shifted Kuga's attention from his gaming console into the phone inside his pocket.

"Who would be calling me at this time?"

Though reluctant, Kuga reached for the device, slightly shocked to see the name of the caller flashing on the screen. With a quick click on the answer button, Kuga answered.

"Rindou-senpai, w-what are you calling for?"

" _Kuga-kun!_ " Apparently, Kobayashi Rindou was a tad impatient in her tone.

With the series of changing events in Tootsuki, even if she's not the Top of the Central, she _is_ still someone in the inner circle. Of course, she'd show impatience. But, it seems that this tone did not rise from the academy's changes, but rather from something else.

" _Where are you?_ "

"I'm on my way to Shizuoka right now."

" _R-Really? W-What are you doing out there?_ " Kuga grew a bit irritated from the upperclassman's question, as to why, he doesn't know. Probably because every second he spends talking to her means he has less time to play his game. So with a hint of indifference, he warned the other line that he'd be hanging up.

" _D-Don't hang up just yet, Kuga-kun!_ "

Rindou was a bit desperate at that attempt, not that she wanted the junior to notice it.

" _I know, I know. You're on your way to see Kinri-chan, are you?_ "

Bull's eye. Kuga's mouth widened in shock. How could have Kobayashi Rindou found out about this? She wasn't informed of Kuga's progress, even if _she_ was technically in it since the very beginning. Well, considering that she's currently an important asset in the Central, one wrong move about their plan would cause everything they'd work for be crushed in an instant. So, he _had_ to keep it from Rindou, until he can find the perfect timing to tell her, that is.

Rindou, on the other hand, found Kuga's sudden silence a total giveaway. With that complete lack of immediate response, she just confirmed one of her two hypotheses.

"H-How did you-"

" _Kuga-kun's such a meanie for not informing me such an important matter. I thought we're in this together." '_ Although I didn't actually hear about any of this. It was just a guess.'

Kuga did not fail to notice the fake hurt Rindou tried to pull off and stayed firm.

"If I were to inform you about my progress, you'd end up acting all secret and whatnot. Nakiri Azami would find it suspicious and eventually figure out what you- we're doing, and you do know that _that's_ the last thing we want to happen, right?"

" _But you could have informed me_ before _you set out..._ "

"And risk myself getting caught up there. Not a chance."

Kuga turned his head to the window, gazing at the fast-moving scenery before him, his hand still on the mobile device pressed on his ear.

"It's almost a year since she disappeared, huh."

" _Yeah. Almost a year since that Shokugeki - I shouldn't have pressed on with that._ "

Rindou's voice cracked on the last part, trying to stop the tears forming in her eyes. The earlier conversation she had with Isshiki Satoshi was coming back to her, making her efforts to not cry close to futile. Kuga could imagine how the upperclassman was looking right now - using her arms to wipe off the pearly tears from her eyes before they try to fall down her cheeks. It's not that Kuga could not sympathize with Rindou, it's just that he doesn't know how to comfort her.

"R-Rindou senpai-"

" _If I didn't push on with that Shokugeki to continue, if I just noticed the burdens that Kinri was hiding, she could still be here with us..._ "

"It's not as if she's dead or anything, you know." Kuga did not try to be insensitive to the crying Rindou, but he tried to make her face some facts. "She's still alive. She's still not six feet under. So stop crying."

Rindou was grateful that Kuga finally found Kinri after all these time, so grateful that the tears just can't stop flowing. But she had to stop, if people see her eyes red, they'd bombard her with questions and might end up being put on the hot seat. So, as per Kuga's request, she picked up her handkerchief placed inside her pocket and wiped her tears dry.

' _Kobayashi Rindou. Are you in there?'_

At that moment, Kuga noticed an unfamiliar voice on the other line, a bit faint but he was able to know that it wasn't someone who should know about Kinri's whereabouts. In a fit of a rush, Kuga tried to warn Rindou of the incoming danger. Of course, Rindou heard the approaching person so she immediately said her goodbye to Kuga and hid her phone and handkerchief into her drawer, closing them quickly.

* * *

 **Finally. Chapter Four complete.  
**

 **For those who continued to follow this story, thank you so much... :D :D**


	5. Chapter 5 - Meeting the Link

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Now that the manga is actually finished with the arc that this story is supposedly coinciding with, I'm really free to write about it...**

 **Again, I don't own Shokugeki no Souma nor its characters.**

 **I'm just an avid fan that gets hungry every time the manga whips up some delicious food (though I just ate).**

* * *

"Rindou-chan, are you in there?"

"C-Come in."

As the door swung open, Kobayashi Rindou was meet with the figure of the current First Seat of the Elite Ten, Tsukasa Eishi. Knowing well that she had to hide her and Kuga's plan from the whitehead, she put up a quick happy face, though it somewhat contrasted her red, puffy eyes. Unfortunately for her, Eishi saw right through her facade.

"A-Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah. Don't mind me. I was thinking of this drama I watched last night. It was so heartbreaking." She half-lied.

The previous night, she _did_ watch a drama series, something that she loved since it started airing. But the latest episode had nothing to cry about - the fact that _that_ one episode was rather the opposite of what you'd expect from a drama series, full of laughter and comedy acts. Though, Eishi won't probably understand nor figure it out.

"O-Okay."

"Anyway, what brings you here?" Rindou had to dispell the gloomy atmosphere; she's already half-way there.

"Have you prepared the paperwork for the Promotion Exams?"

"Y-Yeah. They're all already in your office."

"O-Oh. Thanks."

This is a shock.

For once, Kobayashi Rindou actually settled her assigned paperwork _and_ settled them ahead of schedule. Of course, Eishi accepted the unexpected answer without doubting it one bit, though probably he'd be expecting flying pigs by tomorrow. The white knight's widened eyes and agape mouth were all brushed aside by Rindou, thinking that it'll take Eishi longer to get out of her room if she made fun of it. She doesn't want that at the moment.

"You just arrived, haven't you?"

"Yeah. So, I'm heading to my office now. See ya."

"Bye, Eishi-kun."

With that, Tsukasa Eishi left Rindou's office, still dumbfounded, closing the door behind him and leaving Rindou to gaze through the window behind her swivelling chair.

'Kuga-kun. I hope you actually see her again.''

* * *

"Kuga-sama, that was Kobayashi Rindou-san, was it?"

"Yeah. She found out that we'd already discovered Kinri's whereabouts, it seems."

"You just can't underestimate women, I suppose."

"You got that right." Kuga returned to playing his console, though his mind was now fully occupied with Rindou's unexpected emotional outburst.

He was there, sitting in the VIP area, during the Shokugeki of Rindou and Kinri - the last one that his purplish blue-coloured friend participated in before she left for her _life-changing_ adventure. If only he knew that it would come to _this_ , he could've at least prevented it. Then again, he knew Kinri as a somewhat stubborn person, especially if it involved Satoshi in any way, so his intervention would probably be useless anyway.

If only he and Satoshi knew that those tears that their former Tenth Seat friend shed at the end of the match were actually the breaking point, they could have comforted her and made her not think of applying for a temporary leave - which eventually became more than that.

From the looks of the scenery around them, the car had arrived at a somewhat quiet town, no construction noises, no unwelcome horn honking, no excessively speedy cars racing through or against them.

"We're close, Kuga-sama."

Upon Toudou's affirmation, Kuga directed his eyes to the buildings and people fading through his window.

Though the agent had his eyes firmly on the road, it did not need his visual confirmation to know that his master's expression was currently a mix of hope, fear, and anger - hope of actually finding his friend who disappeared many months back, fear of not knowing what to do once he finds her, and anger for thinking that she'd left them deliberately, well, unconsciously.

"How much farther?"

"Just a few more turns and we'll be at where she's currently taking residence."

Kuga readjusted himself and faced the front of the car.

"How did you manage of trace her all the way to her residence?"

As implied, Kuga was very much curious about such. It has been months since Kinri disappeared, and as far as he knows, the Nakiri family tried their best to locate her but still ended up empty-handed. He sent Toudou to look for Kinri only three months ago, and he'd already found her.

From that, he can imply that it's either that Toudou was just very good and was very suited for this job, or...

...the Nakiri family knew something and wanted Kinri to stay hidden.

The second one can't possibly be true, would it? When it was announced that Kinri disappeared a week after the accident, Nakiri Senzaemon, the one who spoke of the news, delivered the information without a sense of guilt, secrecy, nor bias - he spoke as if it was crushing him from inside, that he wanted to overcome the possibility of actually losing one of his granddaughters.

"I was just lucky, actually."

"What do you mean?"

"I was on my way to Yamanashi when I got lost along the way. After a few detours and help from the locals, I ended up here." Toudou was referring to the town where they're at right now, doing a left turn as he spoke. "When I was about to run out of gas, I asked for directions to the nearest gas station when all of a sudden..."

* * *

"Excuse me, where can I find the nearest gas station here?"

Toudou lowered his window to talk face-to-face with a local man walking near him. Understanding the stranger's predicament, the man approached the car and gave him instructions. As he finished, two teenagers shouted at the local man, earning both his and Toudou's attention.

"Kousuke, Mayoi. What seems to be the problem?"

"Okaa-san said to buy two more kilos of Tachiuo." A bubbly teen who greatly resembled the helpful local informed the other.

"You know you could have just emailed me instead of running."

"Okaa-san wanted us to chase after you. She said running would be good for us," Kousuke added, pouting at the last part.

Toudou found the sudden family conversation quite amusing, but what caught his attention was the girl who spoke next.

"And that she currently confiscated Kousuke-kun's phone, in case you forgot."

"Oh yeah." The man who, apparently might be the father of the two, scratched his cheek in embarrassment.

As Toudou noticed the facial features of the girl, he immediately, without alerting the three, used his hidden right hand to open the small compartment beside him, revealing a photograph of a teenage girl who looked exactly like the girl in front of him. Toudou took a brief glance at the photo and compared it with the one talking - it was a match.

"S-Sorry, but we have to go now." The helpful man bowed to Toudou, who also responded with the same. And after a brief _thanks_ from the driver, the three left.

* * *

"Eh? That was indeed a lucky break, huh." Kuga found himself impressed.

"Yes, it was. After that incident, I asked the manager of a nearby restaurant our group owned to pretend that I was one of their administrative employees for cover's sake and using that as a front, got to earn the father's trust."

"Resourceful," Kuga made a mental note to thank the manager of the said restaurant. "And then?"

"Time to time, I decided to eat at the diner that his family is running. In the guise of a customer or someone he met, I entered their place and even got to personally see how things went."

"Ooh. I was right in assigning you this job." Kuga said cheerfully, probably thinking that he did the right thing.

"But how sure were you that this 'Mayoi' girl was actually Kinri-chin? What if she was just her doppelganger?" Now Toudou noticed the master's sudden change in perspective.

If Toudou didn't do further investigation and got the results from the doctor who examined Kinri, what he's doing right now could be labelled as a wild goose chase, and that won't go well with Kuga. He understood where his master was coming from - how sure _was_ he that the girl he knew by the name of Mayoi was, in fact, Kinri. Thankfully, he already had it all figured out.

"During one of my first few visits there, I met the man's wife."

And there it was.

When Toudou met the wife of the helpful local, he immediately noticed that there was no resemblance of the lady with the teenage girl. Not. A. Thing. Though, this was just all speculation thus far, so he looked for an opportunity every time he had a talk with the man who later he known was Hareda Akazuchi. They'd be found drinking together during closing hours or when there were few customers before they put out the lights, especially during Saturdays. Akazuchi wasn't much of a heavy drinker - he'd start talking nonsense after the sixth or seventh cup, and then fall flat on the table. Later, Toudou would found himself, with Akazuchi's one arm over his shoulder, guiding the drunk father to where he'd be sleeping, guided by Kousuke who already found Toudou's presence comfortable.

Then, a time came when even Hareda Mitsui, Akazuchi's wife, joined in their session, though the woman herself never drank anything save for water. She'd laugh with the two men and would, from time to time, bring back from the kitchen more bottles of sake. While they were chatting, Akazuchi barely on his feet and Mitsui cozily sitting beside him, Toudou made a move.

"Your family really do have a strong bond, huh, Hareda-san."

"Of course! " Akazuchi sang, raising his sakazuki cup in mid-air. "We love each other here in the house. Isn't that right, Mitsui?"

"Sure is, honey." Mitsui giggled at her husband's actions.

Akazuchi, when completely sane and alcohol-free, is a serious man who knows how to show he cares. But at that moment, sanity is about to fly north for the winter. Akazuchi can barely sit straight.

"Kousuke-kun and Mayoi-chan really know what they should do even without you guys telling them, huh."

"That's why we love them so much. Boh of them. Kousuke and Mayoi." Akazuchi was on his last stand.

"And Kousuke-kun really has an uncanny resemblance to his father, doesn't he, Hareda-san," Toudou referring to Mitsui.

"Yes, he does. When Kousuke was still a kid, he'd always ride on his papa's back when they go to the market. The townspeople then started calling Kousuke "Akazuchi Jr." He'd always pout when people call him that, saying stuff like "I'm Kousuke! I'm not Akazuchi Jr.! And I'm going to tower over him one day, you'll see!', not realising he's already towering over him as he spoke."

"Eh? Kousuke-kun was like that?" Toudou then laughed, finding it honestly amusing.

"How about Mayoi, Hareda-san?" At this point, Akazuchi was in deep silence, almost boring a hole through the two as they spoke. Mitsui and Toudou didn't seem to mind.

"We love her so much, much like she was one of our own. Actually, at this point, we don't mind that she's not an actual blood relative. We love her and that's it." Akazuchi nodded in agreement, apparently there's still a few working brain cells inside of him.

"H-Huh? What do you mean?" Toudou was on the edge of his seat.

The kids were in their respective rooms, sleeping. Luckily enough since the conversation the adults were having was a bit on the serious side, though everyone in the household, save for one, already knew about it.

"We found her one day when we were heading back from our yearly visit in Kanagawa. Her head, hands, her entire body was covered in blood and her tears wouldn't stop falling. It would be cold of us to not help her, so we did. She lost consciousness even before she rode our car. When she came to, we were already at the nearest hospital. "

"And then?" Looks like his job is about to climax.

"The doctors asked if she can remember anything, but she didn't reply. But when she finally did, we were caught by surprise of what she said."

...

 _"Please."_

 _"Please, I beg you."_

 _"I beg you all."_

 _"I don't want to go back."_

 _"I don't want to remember a thing."_

 _"I want to forget."_

 _..._

"After that, she fell unconscious again. When she woke up again after a few hours, that was it. She didn't remember anything."

 _'Jackpot.'_

* * *

 **For those who don't know:**

 **Tachiuo: a summer fish popular in Japan despite its great length. Widely used in Shizuoka.**

 **Sakazuki: a flat cup normally used to drink sake in Japan.**

 **Kanagawa: a prefecture located South of Tokyo prefecture.**

 **Shizuoka: a prefecture along the coast of Japan, left of Kanagawa.**

 **Finally. I'm around 50% complete, I think.**

 **Thanks for following and reading this story guys. It means a lot.**


	6. Chapter 6 - The Calm

**Thank you ever so much for those who still read the story even after at least 2 years of inactivity.**

 **I'm so sorry if the style altered a bit.**

* * *

 _K-Kinri-chin..._

What his subordinate said a few hours ago still rang inside the male student's head, making him feel conflicted about what he was planning.

 _So..._

 _Kinri-chin really wanted to leave Tootsuki?_

 _Why on Earth for?_

 _I'm sure as hell that she won't leave without saying a word to her boyfriend..._

 _So..._

 _What_ the hell _happened?_

"Oh, Toudou-san! Good morning. What brings you here early in the morning?"

While the chef-in-training was lost in thought, the head chef approached the table of Toudou and his master.

After arriving near the humble abode of the Hareda family, Kuga suggested that he and his driver enter the place and do a little snooping - if they could. The short male was informed beforehand that his supposed former classmate was out to school and that warning allowed Kuga to be at ease. Though, while entering the traditional restaurant run by the Hareda family, instead of being on alert, the Tootsuki student has things to think about.

"My employer here," Toudou guided Mitsui's eyes to the male beside him, "wanted to taste the ramen I bragged to him."

"Oh, my..." Mitsui giggled, one hand covering her lips. "It's an honor."

Hidden from Hareda Mitsui's eyes, Toudou nudged his master beside him, slowly pulling the shorter male from his concentration.

"Master. This is the head chef of this small restaurant, Hareda Mitsui."

"Nice meeting you, sir." The lady chef bowed politely to the customers.

"A-Ah, yes. Good morning," Kuga mentally hissed at himself for stuttering. "Nice to meet you." The male slowly moved away to stand in place and bowed at the female as a sign of respect. "I'm Terunori Kuga. Pleased to be your acquaintance."

"The pleasure's all mine."

As both chefs stood up straight, Mitsui carefully studied to shorter male's appearance, much to the other's confusion.

"Terunori... ah! Your family owns that restaurant chain downtown!"

"Yes, Hareda-san. That's the restaurant that I'm working at," Toudou smoothly lied on that information. "Kuga-sama here runs the entire chain in the name of his family."

"But, don't worry, Hareda-san," Kuga reassured the female chef. "I'm here simply as a customer. My employee here said that the ramen you make is highly interesting." Mitsui thanked the compliment.

"In that case, I assume you guys want the ramen specialty for today?" Mitsui asked with Kuga quickly responding with a 'yes'.

"Please wait here for a few minutes, I'll get back to you guys with my ramen. I hope you enjoy them," and the chef slowly returned to the kitchen.

"Do you have any idea how we can do snooping in this situation?" Kuga whispered to the driver.

"Leave it to me, Kuga-sama," Toudou responded with confidence, not bothering to whisper back. "I can handle this."

The young male returned to his seat with arms folded over his chest. "For your sake, I hope your right."

* * *

The bell has rung.

After the teacher ended the class and slowly walked to the door, students immediately started moving from their seats as soon as the instructor was gone.

Footsteps pitter-pattering inside the room of class 2-B became louder and louder along with the sound of chairs and tables rearranged by groups of students. Mayoi, on the other hand, was still planted on her seat as she slowly grabbed the packed lunch inside her bag. As she grabbed the tied-up handkerchief inside her schoolbag, a sudden call of her name grabbed Mayoi's attention.

There was now a male sitting across Mayoi, not to mention a recently placed table.

"Do you mind if I sit here with you, Hareda-chan?" The male asked with a cheeky grin.

"A-Ah, no, I don't." The female slowly pulled out her lunch and placed it on her desk.

Both students started opening their lunchboxes. Mayoi's box contained an ample amount of rice with gyoza, fish fillet, vegetables, and some sliced pears arranged around it. On the other table, the male's lunch comprised of rice, shrimp tempura, egg rolls, and veggies.

"Wow, Hareda-chan. Those gyoza look so tasty."

"T-These are just leftovers from last night."

Without a warning, a pair of black chopsticks reached for one of the four gyoza the female had. "Let me have a taste of this."

Before Mayoi can complain, the male already had the food in his mouth, chewing it like nobody's business.

"T-These are delicious, H-Hareda-chan! Let me have more."

In response, Mayoi blocked the male's chopsticks by covering her meal with her hands. "N-No! These aren't delicious at all!"

The male pouted, his cheeks puffed, as he retracted his utensils. "What are you talking about? The gyoza was cooked perfectly inside."

"Compared to what Okaa-san makes, these are unappetizing," the female responded sadly.

Seeing the classmate feeling down, the male felt the need to flick his fingers onto the female's forehead, so he did.

"A-Ouch! What was that for?"

"I have eaten in your restaurant a bunch of times, Mayoi-chan, your gyoza tastes just as good as that of your mother's. Have some confidence in yourself, why don't you?"

Mayoi did not expect the sudden compliment and encouragement from the classmate, so in response, she simply lowered her head, thanked the male in a soft voice but not so soft that the person didn't hear it, and grabbed her chopsticks as she started eating.

"Don't worry about it," the male simply grinned at the classmate, his sky blue orbs hidden behind the close-eyed smile.

* * *

"I hope this is to your liking, Terunori-san."

A few minutes after their orders were taken, two large bowls filled to the brim with soup, noodles, and various toppings made their way to table number 5. Catered by the head chef herself, Kuga and his subordinate welcomed the steaming hot meals.

"Let's taste the broth first," the young male slowly placed his hands on the sides of the bowl and lifted the round container to his mouth.

As the head chef, Mitsui was feeling both confident and scared. She knew the quality of the food the chain restaurant Kuga owns and it was deserving of the fame it possesses. Though that said, she knew her ramen are just as scrumptious.

She just hopes her ramen can reach as many souls as the famous restaurant.

"This is amazing!" The boy then continued slurping down the noodles.

"T-Thank you," Mitsui felt a huge weight was lifted off of her, like, a needle was pulled out of her heart, soothing her.

"In that case," Toudou grabbed the wooden utensils placed in front of him, "Let's eat."

While the two customers dined, Mitsui excused herself to return to the kitchen when regulars started pouring in. From where they were seated - at the corner opposite to the counter, Toudou and Kuga continued on eating, this time, a certain gyoza dish they recently ordered.

"Toudou-san!"

A man that came in from the main entrance called out to the driver. The voice was enough for Toudou to identify the man, even without turning around.

"Hareda-san!"

Akazuchi, the head chef's husband, arrived at the restaurant, with bags of groceries on one hand.

"Good morning, Toudou-san. I didn't expect you to be here this early."

"I wanted to bring my boss into this place."

As Toudou briefly introduced Kuga to the chef's husband, both Akazuchi and the young male exchanged greetings and bows.

"Excuse me. I'll bring these bags inside first," and off went Akazuchi.

After a few minutes, he came back to table number 5 and excused himself to sit across Toudou.

"So," the older male started off, "how's my wife's cooking?"

"They're actually tasty. The noodle's texture is perfect, I can feel my energy recharged by the broth, and the seasonings are a perfect match with the rest of the ramen," Kuga responded, nodding his head in contentment while folding his arms over his chest.

A feeling of relief and joy came to Akazuchi as well as Mitsui who was manning the counter of their old-style Japanese restaurant. The female chef was obviously glad to hear the compliment, a big smile evident on her cheeks. The husband's reaction was a bit different.

"See! I told you my wife's cooking is the best," he heartily proclaimed as he patted onto Toudou's back with slight force.

"Does Terunori-san want to eat here at dinner? Today is 'Exotic Night'."

"E-Exotic Night?"

"Every Exotic Night, Mitsui or I cook non-Japanese dishes. Tonight is Mitsui's turn."

"I'm planning on cooking something I haven't cooked since I got married," Mitsui came by the table. "It would be an honour if you guys would come and taste it."

Both Kuga and Toudou looked at each other in thought, as if trying to read each other's minds.

"What do you say, Kuga-sama?"

"I suppose it won't hurt," the Haredas exchanged smiles with each other.

"Please take care of us."

* * *

Although it was already after-school, Mayoi was still accompanied by the male she had a conversation with for the very first time earlier that day. Both are currently walking down the hallway as the female proceeded to where her younger brother would be.

"Nee, Hareda-chan!" Unlike the female, the male was wearing a backpack, so his hand was free to rest on his nape.

Mayoi hummed a questioning tone as a response.

"We are heading to fetch your younger brother, right?" His sky blue orbs glanced through the corner of his eyes to look at the classmate.

"Yes. We are supposed to shop for our dinner together."

"Ah... I see."

No words were exchanged for the next couple of minutes until Mayoi broke the silence.

"Excuse me for asking this, but why are you with me again?"

"Why, you say? Do you need to have a reason to establish friendship, Haneda-chan?"

The male's confident reply sent Mayoi to think of a response.

"N-Not exactly, but..."

"See, it doesn't matter," the male softly patted Mayoi's back as he showed the female his beaming smile.

"Come on. You want to go home already, right?"

In front of the Elementary Department building, Kousuke later welcomed the older female and her classmate, a cheeky smile visible in his face coupled with reddening cheeks. Before Mayoi can even ask about it, both second years were pulled away by the fuming youngster. This only increased the confusion of the short-haired female.

On their way to the supermarket, Mayoi tried to open up the issue, but Kousuke continued on walking with his head down while his lips curving upward in a weird fashion.

 _Something good must have happened_ , Mayoi thought.

* * *

Both Hareda youngsters and the accompanying male stopped in front of the traditional restaurant owned and managed by Mayoi and Kousuke's parents, all three holding completely filled reusable shopping bags.

"Uhm..."

"Ni-san," Kousuke interrupted. "A-Aobata-san, right?"

"Yep. Aobata Yukio, to be complete," the second-year male smiled, directing a quick peek on Mayoi through the corner of his eyes.

"Aobata-sa-"

"Chan is okay."

"Aobata-c-chan..." There was hesitation. "Remind me again why you walked all the way here with us?"

"I always wanted to eat in this restaurant," the male reached out for the handle of the wooden sliding door with his free hand. "My mum says the ramen here is satisfying and deserves a Michelin star."

"It is! Okaa-san's cooking is the best,"responded the enthusiastic Kousuke.

As Yukio slowly slid the door, the younger of the three then immediately marched towards the kitchen after shouting a quick 'I'm back,' two heavy bags swaying slowly with every step.

"I'm back," unlike his brother, Mayoi was still in the entrance together with the other male.

At the opposite side of the entrance opened another door, a door that connected the restaurant to, probably, the family's actual residence.

"Welcome back, you two... and..."

"Pardon the intrusion, sir!" Akazuchi's stern appearance did not faze the lively Yukio. "I'd like to eat here if it's possible."

"Of course."

After handing over the groceries to the older male, both Mayoi and Yukio proceeded to a nearby table, the Haneda daughter politely giving a copy of the menu to the seated customer.

"Mayoi-chan," a soft, feminine hands landed on the young girl's shoulder. "I'll take this order. You can change first."

"O-Okay..."

"Also, we will have guests later in the evening, so inform Kousuke to be on his best attitude later, okay?"

"Yes, Kaa-san."


End file.
